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Broken Tooth or Dental Appliance: First Aid

Topic Overview

If a tooth or dental appliance breaks, take the following
steps:

Remove loose dentures and the parts of broken
dentures.

Find any pieces of tooth or the broken dental appliance
and take them with you when you go to see your dentist. Your dentist will want
to check for missing pieces of tooth or dental appliance that may have been
left in a wound, swallowed, or inhaled into the lungs
(aspirated).

If the top (crown) of a tooth has been broken,
apply a small piece of cotton or gauze soaked in hydrogen peroxide to the crown
to help reduce bleeding.

If an orthodontic wire, bracket, or jagged
edge of a tooth is poking you, roll a piece of candle wax or orthodontic wax
and press it onto the part. A broken wire can be pressed toward your teeth with
a pencil eraser.

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